Tara Erwin
SKM Group - Buffalo Advertising Agency - Creating results through targeted marketing.
One might argue that Matt Cascarino, our new Executive Creative Director (ECD), knows SKM Group better than most SKMers. That’s because he is a two-time former client, electing to take us with him when he pursued opportunities at another company. Working with SKM for over 10 years has given Matt a unique perspective to the intricacies of agency/client relationships and client expectations, which will further ensure our work is shaped by research and insights, voiced appropriately, and measured by our clients’ definition of success.
As the leader of our creative staff, Matt is responsible for much more than making sure things look and sound terrific. Matt collaborates with his team on translating product positioning and key differentiators into compelling content that inspires action and engagement. Matt was the Director of Marketing at Identifix, one of our long-standing clients, prior to coming to SKM. He holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Temple University, and has made his way throughout America’s heartland and eastern seaboard in pursuit of marketing nirvana. Happy to now call Buffalo, a place he has often visited in a client capacity, his home, Matt enjoys expanding his culinary repertoire and playing the guitar when he’s not busy single parenting his four-year-old son, Wylie (which pretty much means he doesn’t get to cook for fun or play the guitar very often).
In between unpacking his extensive eyewear collection and scoping out the “weird, but not too weird kids” for Wylie to befriend, Matt took a few minutes to answer some questions. Hopefully they give our readers a better insight into our new ECD, but if you’re still left with a burning question or two, feel free to drop him a line at mcascarino@skmgroup.com.
So take us back in time: how were you first introduced to SKM Group, and what made you choose us for your marketing communication needs when you were at Interbay Funding?
I wasn’t nearly as fancy back in 2004, so I didn’t “choose” SKM as much as I was instructed to call them by my boss, who had previously worked with SKM. While I wasn’t the decision maker, I did elect to blur the line between client and agency, urging my superior to cultivate a more social relationship with the folks on our account. Mixing business with pleasure is always a risky proposition, but in our case, getting to know each other personally elevated the quality of the work because we were all more emotionally invested in the relationship. Since starting at SKM, I’ve learned we have a saying: clients enjoy working with us as much as they appreciate the work itself. I was certainly one of the clients that contributed to that sentiment.
When you left Interbay for a new position at Identifix, you again made sure SKM Group was there. Why bring the agency with you, and not start fresh with a new team?
As a marketing director in a new setting, it’s not uncommon to want to get the band back together. But this was Minnesota and if I learned only one thing from my five-plus years in the Midwest, it was that they like to do business with their own. So after having to endure about 10 months of shepherding a local agency through our work, often behaving as their ECD out of desperation, I got the green light to bring SKM on board. Immediately, I felt like I had a strategic and creative team who were an extension of my vision, rather than the financial and emotional burden of a crew who had to be spoon fed ideas and still struggled to get it right. Of course it’s nice if your marketing partner works around the corner, but I’ll take talent over time zone any day.
Okay, the big question: now that you’ve been on the other side of the coin for a few weeks, what’s the difference between being a client of SKM Group and being a part of the agency?
Night and day. As a client, all I wanted to do was collaborate with SKM on delivering work that best met the objectives of the business. In reality, I only spent about half the time on the work and the other half traveling, coordinating events, and tending to the more administrative tasks associated with running a department. Now that I’m at SKM, it really is all about the work. And while the pace is ridiculous, the energy in the building is so positive that you don’t mind digging a little deeper in the spirit of producing outstanding results for our clients.
What strengths and experience do you bring to the position of ECD? How do you see your role, internally as well as client side?
My creative background as a copywriter aside, I bring both perspective and passion to the ECD role. I know from being on the other side of the wall that clients aren’t looking to us for ads and postcards. They want strategic thinking from an experienced marketing team who can view their business through a fresh set of eyes, confirm some assumptions, but also illuminate opportunities that may have been previously overlooked. It’s perfectly fine if ads and postcards end up being the best vehicles for the message, but the process begins well before the content is created. Strategic marketing has always been one of SKM’s strengths, and it’s great to be able to continue that momentum using my client-side experience to impact our work.
Passion doesn’t just refer to my own dedication to the role, but our ability to renew a client’s passion for what they do. So often, I’ve met clients who have been grinding away at the day-to-day for so long that the spark they had in the beginning is gone. By having a client set aside the commitments and anxieties of a typical workday and talk about why they got into the business in the first place, their passion is reignited, resulting in thorough input which informs superior agency work.
From where do you draw inspiration for ideas? How does your creative process work?
I always begin with the end user’s experience and work backwards. That’s why research and historical data are critically important to our work. If we know what kinds of messages, communication channels and timing influence behaviors and response, we can make sure our client is positioned to make genuine connections with their audience that motivate action.
How do you view marketing/advertising? Is it there to inform or entertain? Can it effectively do both?
Good marketing or advertising is about storytelling. And like any good story, it needs to draw me in, hold my attention, and make me feel something more personal than a sales pitch. Companies are starting to make genuine connections with their audience more often, realizing that they can’t push a product on features or convenient store hours alone. A spot that entertains is fine as long as it’s achieving the client’s objectives; but humor for humor’s sake isn’t the wisest investment of one’s marketing dollars, in my opinion. If I can relate to the message and it inspires me to engage with the company, then it’s working.
Now that you’re a Buffalonian, what are some favorite activities for you to do around here?
One of the first things I did after I set my bags down was find a place to get a good haircut, as that can be the most stressful aspect of any long-distance move. The last thing I want to do is introduce myself to Western New York looking like some woodland creature gnawed on my dome.
Compared to your experience with other cities, what are your first impressions as a resident?
Buffalo is the friendliest city I have ever visited, hands down. I’m drawn to cities like Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Providence, whose residents wear their historical down-and-outness almost like a badge of honor, taking pride in how far they’ve come rather than lamenting the circumstances of the past. This translates to a population who appreciates the person next to them. Quite simply, Buffalonians love where they live, welcoming newcomers like myself without the hazing rituals of some larger metropolitan areas.
What’s the last good book you’ve read?
“A Confederacy of Dunces.” It’s both inspiring and enraging when literally every word is good.
Tell us about something funny Wylie’s said recently.
Wylie is both an old soul and a comic genius, which pretty much makes him the Milton Berle of the schoolyard. One of his signature moves is delivering lines exactly as an adult would say them. The last time he got a haircut, he got into the stylist’s chair and said in his best middle-aged female tone: “Just a haircut today. I’m pretty happy with the color.”
Tara Erwin
Public Relations
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